Speakeasy encore for greatest hits selection at silver celebration

SPEAKEASY Toastmasters 25th anniversary celebration night will take place in the Hibernian Hotel on Friday, March 2 at 8pm.

Since the first demonstration Toastmasters meeting was held in Mallow in October 1992, over 2,000 speeches have been delivered at Speakeasy Toastmasters. Each speech was an achievement for the speaker who delivered it, and another milestone on the journey towards excellent communication which is speaking with ease and confidence. Every speech was a story told, an opinion shared and a useful outpouring of ideas.

So fluent were the members of Speakeasy that two collections of speeches were published. In 1995, ‘Unaccustomed As I Am’ became a local best seller and its 1999 sequel. ‘Sin Scéal Eile’ proved to be equally popular.

Down through the years there were several guests at meetings who said ‘I could never do that’, yet, a short time later they found themselves delivering speeches with the skills of a professional.

The ethos of Speakeasy Toastmasters is to encourage and motivate each member to be the best they can be. With a friendly, yet formal atmosphere, and an emphasis on quality evaluation the group have helped members to acquire communicating excellence.

The celebration night will feature an array of speakers, both former and current members, who will entertain, enlighten and give cause for reflection. Among the speakers will be wellknown personalities like Matt Lawlee. Matt is synonymous with humour and represented Speakeasy in the Irish and English District Final on two occasions, emerging triumphant in 1995.

He will be joined by Michael Cronin, another speaker who is renowned for his humour. Michael was a District winner in 2008.

Several other speakers are remembered for powerful presentations that live long in the memory of all those who witnessed them. Kieran Butler will deliver his very enjoyable ode to the single life. Bobby Buckley will regale the attendance with his tales of a Mallow childhood.

Other speakers include Kieran Buckley, Vivien Buckley, Joan Linehan and Deirdre Linehan. This ‘greatest hits’ package is guaranteed to entertain and enthrall or, to borrow a phrase from Gay Byrne, will have “something for everyone in the audience”.

Food and beverages will also be available on the night. ST wish to invite all friends and followers to join in the celebrations. Guests will not be cajoled into speaking unless they really want to.

Meanwhile, the next meeting will take place on tonight Thursday, February 22 at 8pm.in the Hibernian Hotel. As always, a fine selection of speakers is on the menu.

For further information on the celebration night or on Toastmasters in general, please check out Facebook or contact Helsa Giles, 0838858848.